Hey, guys. Been printing TST non-stop for a few weeks now! I'm really struggling with painting the dungeon walls and columns. I watched the Beginner's Guide to Drybrushing video on the Bravo Gaming channel many times, but I just can't seem to get the look of TST. I've tried using a very dark gray, dark gray, medium gray, and very light gray (in that order) over black primer. I've tried variations on these, tried leaving out the darkest gray, tried washes, but my stuff looks too black & white (high contrast between the darker colors and the lighter). Leaving out the darkest shade helps with this, but I can't get what I see in your pics (for example, the image of the dungeon walls in the How-To Paint Indoor Hexes post). If you're working on this How-To, I'll just remain patient...
Hi there! Hmmm that’s an interesting one. There will indeed be an official TST ‘How to Paint’ episode upcoming for walls, but in the meantime, the only thing I can think of that might be causing your problem with mimicking our paint scheme is to do with how much paint is on your brush. If you‘re a bit heavy with the paint, it can end up ‘not looking right’ as the colours all tend to meld into splotches rather than a gradual, highlighted aged stone-looking palette. I’d just make double sure you really get most of the paint off your brush before applying, especially on the final 3 colours. One way or another, I’m sure we‘ll get your walls looking great.
As an added thought, if you posted a picture or two of the paint colors you are using, and the end result you are achieving we might be able to provide some additional pointers. The next painting video to be released will be the "Outdoor Hexes" tutorial, but the Dungeon walls will follow that video shortly thereafter.
Here are the 4 grays I’ve been using, along with 2 other shades I’ve experimented with as well.
Thanks!
@MyCoatAin'tJacket I think these look great - I would happily put them on my table. But, if you want to improve the paint job, the TST folks’ recommendation about drying the brush a lot more will make a difference. In these images, one can see the distinct brush strokes in a lot of places - these are caused by the paint medium still being wet on the brush, when we really just want there to be dry pigments in the bristles before we touch brush to terrain. In addition to leaving brush strokes, this wet medium can allow the paint to flow into the recesses, which eliminates the highlight effect. Also make sure to thoroughly wipe the brush clean between color changes, and don’t use water for cleaning up until you’re done with the brush for the day. Keeping a ‘test’ model on your bench for making sure the drybrushing will behave as expected before using it on your terrain can also help you dial in ‘how dry is dry enough’, as sometimes it’s hard to tell on a paper towel, especially for lighter colors. I’m no expert in this, and am mostly parroting what I’ve heard from the greats, but I will say that even with this type of ‘quick’ painting technique, it always takes a bit of patience and tons of brush strokes to get the smooth highlight effect.
@James Fodor Thanks, this is very helpful. I’ll see what happens and let you know.
I would also advocate to you to try and larger brush!
I am not sure where you are located but here in the states, Home Depot has small and large, pure bristle paint brushes for under $2 each in their paint department (plain wood handles).
They are cheap for a reason but make excellent dry brush brushes.
I notice if I use too small a brush, its hard to dry brush off enough paint as well as retain enough to get the full effect. For these bigger terrain pieces, a bigger brush makes it a lot easier!
These are the small ones: